Canadian History - When Did It Happen? Quiz

Answer: Seventh

For many years, Canadians flew the Union Jack or a red ensign flag. That is ... until 1965 rolled around. Shortly before the Canadian Centennial, during the years of Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, a committee was formed to develop a new national flag to display the Canadian identity.

As such, the red-and-white was created using a national symbol-- the maple leaf-- that had been used in coats of arms and on Canadian money since Confederation.

Answer: Fourth

The first Stanley Cup-- then not named 'Stanley Cup', but instead the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup-- was awarded in 1893 and, for twelve years, was restricted to amateur teams in league games. It wasn't until 1906 that professional teams were able to take their (slap)shots at the cup.

In 1926 it started its official affiliation with the NHL and has been the end-game of the National Hockey League playoffs every year since (barring notable exceptions). The first non-Canadian team to win the cup was the Seattle Metropolitans in 1917, and the first NHL team to do so was the New York Rangers in 1927.

Answer: Sixth

The tenth province to be added into the fold, Newfoundland remained dominion of the United Kingdom until 1949, at which point it and Labrador to the northwest became part of Canada, over eight decades past the date of Confederation. The name of the province never became Newfoundland and Labrador until the turn of the century when an amendment to the Canadian constitution was made in 2001.

Answer: Third

Exploration of Western Canada, especially around the time of surveillance for the Canadian Pacific Railway, led to the discovery of hot springs in the Rocky Mountains and the establishment of Banff, Alberta. It took only a few years before it was made into a reserve and the first protected National Park (under the name Rocky Mountains National Park) in 1885. Two more-- Glacier and Yoho-- were formed in the following year. Since then, the national Park System has set up dozens of locations across the country, protecting more than 3% of the country's landmass.

Answer: First (the earliest)

Confederation was, effectively, the birth of the nation that became Canada. In 1867 (on July 1st, Canada Day), the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia combined to form the Dominion of Canada. Still under British rule (or at least with British involvement) for more than a hundred years after Confederation due to the British North America Act of 1867, Canada was on its first steps to becoming a sovereign nation on that day. Within six years, three more provinces and the northwest Territories would be added to the roster.

Answer: Eighth

Another event occurring during Pearson's time as Prime Minister, the Medical Care Act introduced a Universal Health Care system in 1966, years after piloting the project in Alberta and Saskatchewan after World War II. The Medicare plan was a success, with many attributing free healthcare to Canadian identity.

This was further elaborated on in 1984 when a bill was passed preventing extra fees from being tacked on by doctors. Additional insurance programs exist for health issues beyond the coverage provided by Medicare.

Answer: Fifth

1917 was a tragic year for Canadians. In the throes of World War I, Canadian soldiers fought overseas. While the Battle of the Somme involved Canadian soldiers the year before, the Battle of Vimy Ridge in France proved to be only of the most famous battles for the nation, during which forces overtook the Germans to reclaim the territory.
In the same year, in December, much of Halifax, Nova Scotia was destroyed when a ship carrying explosives collided with another vessel in the harbour. Thousands were killed in the blast.

Answer: Tenth (the most recent)

While Canada was also the host country for the Summer Olympics in Montreal in 1976 and the Winter Olympics in Calgary in 1988, Vancouver marked an important time in Canadian sporting history when the country won fourteen gold medals (they'd never won a gold in either of their two hosted Olympic Games) and thirty-seven medals overall, breaking records for both statistics.

Answer: Second

A part of the stipulation in convincing the people of British Columbia to join after Confederation, it took ten years to begin the railway in 1881 and an additional four years of labour (most of which was not entirely kosher) before the tracks created in the west were connected to those in Ontario and further east. Over the decades, the CP line grew to cover most of the southern stretches of the provinces and certain cities in the Northeastern United States, influencing trade in the country's early days and helping settle Western Canada.

Answer: Ninth

While the Northwest Territories became a part of Canada as early as 1870 and the Yukon was added into the fold in 1898 to encompass all of Northern Canada beyond the boundaries of the Prairies, it wasn't until 1999 that the territory of Nunavut was formed, splitting the Northwest Territories after a referendum in 1992.

Much of the population of this northeasterly region is Inuit and lives in the capital city of Iqaluit on Baffin Island.